Hello everyone, I’m Buket!
In this blog post, I would like to take you with me to my training course experience in Germany, a journey where I was surrounded by nature while brainstorming about the opportunities and risks of the digital world.
Between 17–23 November 2025, I had the opportunity to participate in a training course titled “What Should Our Digital Future Look Like?”, in Neu-Anspach, Germany. I was able to take part in this project thanks to Pi Youth Association, and I am truly glad I did. This one week experience taught me not only about digitalization, but also how valuable it is to build bridges between different cultures -especially at a young age- and to collect unforgettable memories along the way.
The main focus of the project was to understand the role of digitalization in our lives and how it intersects with youth work. As a group of youth workers, educators, and youth leaders, we focused on the following topics.
Social Media and Digital Culture
We discussed how social media transforms our ways of communication and how phenomena such as fake news and hate speech affect our societies.
Digital Identity
We examined the digital traces we leave behind on the internet and how these traces shape our identities in the long term.
Big Data and Algorithmic Discrimination
We explored not only the opportunities created by data collection, but also the risks biased algorithms pose to social justice.
Artificial Intelligence
During our visit to the Museum of Communication in Frankfurt, we participated in an interactive workshop on visualizing and transforming real designs into videos using artificial intelligence. It was both educational and deeply inspiring.
Smart Cities, IoT, and the Digitalization of Work
We shared our thoughts on how digitalization shapes our daily lives, as well as our fears and hopes for the future.
E-Participation and Democracy
Together, we reflected on a crucial question: Will our digital future become more democratic, or will digitalization reinforce authoritarian tendencies?
Neu-Anspach was a peaceful and inspiring town surrounded by lush green landscapes. Our accommodation was both comfortable and deeply connected to nature. We often went on walks, engaging in long conversations in small groups of two or three, discussing how digitalization influences our relationship with social media, our sense of self, and the dreams we build for the future. These walks became some of the most meaningful moments of the entire project.
Learning, Exploring, and Creating Together
Throughout the week, we did much more than just listen. The program was filled with workshops, presentations, podcast analyses, group work, and creative activities. We learned how algorithms function, discussed their risks and opportunities, and strengthened our digital literacy skills.
More importantly, being part of such a safe, sincere, and inclusive environment meant a lot to me. This feeling is truly unique. We built strong connections with people from different cultures in an atmosphere free of discrimination. We learned and had fun at the same time – laughing, sharing, questioning, and expanding each other’s horizons. Every corner of the place we stayed carries traces of our laughter and shared memories. One of the most enjoyable moments of the project was Cultural Day. These were warm and colorful moments where each country shared its unique tastes, traditions, and stories. We learned how digitally advanced Estonia is, discovered Ukraine’s dances, realized how many traditions we share
with Armenia and Serbia, felt the warmth of Greece, admired Georgia’s natural beauty, and experienced how wonderful Germany truly is. I also had the chance to represent Türkiye, sharing my culture with great sincerity – from our food to our conversations. We even visited a döner place in town run by a Turkish family, and everyone absolutely loved it! Now they all want to eat döner again in Türkiye – with me as their guide. I gained friendships that I believe will last a lifetime.
More Than Just a Training, a Journey
This project was not only about learning digitalization; it was also a journey of rediscovering myself, my thoughts, and my perspective on the future. I encountered new viewpoints, built meaningful friendships, and together we discussed how we can shape the digital world of tomorrow into a more equitable, inclusive, and hopeful place.
See you in the next adventure!